Youngstown will bring back holiday parade

YOUNGSTOWN — After a lengthy absence, the Downtown Youngstown Holiday Parade returns Dec. 5.

Organizers aren’t expecting a huge crowd for the parade, but anticipate it growing in popularity in years to come.

“It’s not going to be a big grandiose thing, but we want to get it started again and bring people downtown,” said Councilman John R. Swierz, D-7th, and the chairman of First Night Youngstown’s parade committee. “We don’t have major expectations, but we want to get it started and help it grow in future years.”

The city and First Night are cosponsoring the parade.

The last Youngstown Holiday Parade [then known as the Youngstown Christmas Parade] was held in the early 1990s, Swierz said.

At the time, downtown had lost many of its stores and “interest waned” for the annual parade that began in the 1940s, Swierz said.

The parade attracted 50,000 to 60,000 annually in the mid-1950s, according to Vindicator files.

The parade steps off Andrews Avenue about 3 p.m. and goes to East Federal Street before ending on the city’s Central Square.

The city’s Christmas tree on the Central Square will be lit about 4:30 p.m.

For the complete story, read Saturday’s Vindicator or Vindy.com